Today 11/19/14 I am starting a Paleo Diet and I'm going to try to eliminate gluten. I'll try to stick to it for a month. Paleo means I eat mainly fruits and vegetables and some meat. I guess it also includes some nuts and dairy. I'm looking for support and accountability on here, so if you want to start a diet (it doesn't have to be the diet I'm on) and are looking for someone to give you support as well, then join the thread.

Let's support each other.

Jshect

11-19-14, 07:26 PM

It will be difficult because I cannot eat pizza because it contains gluten, however I can eat gluten-free pizza but I'm trying to avoid that because I'm trying to eat healthy stuff like vegetables and just because something is gluten free does not mean it's healthy.
my main issue is a SCTish brain fog. Brain fog can be caused by inflammation of the brain, which can be caused by allergens like Gluten and other foods like eggs, nuts, dairy and definitely whether or not you are allergic to it... sugar. For now I'm just going to try to eat healthy in general and not eat gluten. I may try to exclude other foods later.

Jshect

11-19-14, 07:33 PM

Day 1:
weight: 198 lbs

cheat: before I declared I was starting this diet I had some candy
healthy: I had a soupy vegetable concoction I made in bulk and chicken.
for dinner I had taco meat, beef with onions, peppers, tomatoes, spinach and spices.
Tonight I will probably have some more of that vegetable concoction.

peripatetic

11-19-14, 07:37 PM

I've heard really positive things about grain elimination. I look forward to seeing how this goes for you. Good luck!

Jshect

11-20-14, 12:26 AM

I just hope I can stick to it. I just walked by a bag of bagels cooked in a local bakery and I was thinking of eating one and starting my diet tomorrow. The thing is that will be a constant problem.
If I'm going to be eating a lot of vegetables, I'm going to need to learn how to make them taste good and that's the hard part. I've got the grain-brain cook book, I've just got to discipline myself to learn to cook. If I don't learn to cook healthy foods well, than I'll never succeed, because I hate vegetables. This is going to be tough. I HATE Big Food. These horrible but delicious processed, chemical, food-like substances are everywhere. There's a convenience store on every street corner with candy, sodas, hot dogs, chips, pizza etc. Oh how can I give up soda and chips. Well there are gluten free chips.
My brain fog was so severe all these years I've got to try and stick to this diet. I probably should do something even more extreme, because my brain fog has ruined my life.
If anyone knows anything about brain fog and food please chime in.

Jshect

11-22-14, 01:14 AM

Wow time flies.

day 3: I'm still sticking to my diet. I made huge quantities of the foods I ate my first say so I am still eating them.

Recipes:
Herbs and spices are the key. I hate vegetables. I make a vegetable concoction that contains: (for flavor) large container of organic chicken broth, a couple spoons of organic chicken stock, balsamic vinaigrette, spices like oregano, onion powder, dill, pepper... i just throw in random amounts and taste it until it tastes good (that ways it's quick and painless); oven fried chicken thighs and breasts; to be healthy a ton of vegetables: diced onions and peppers(really add flavor( the more the better), carrots, tomatoes, leaks, cucumbers, squash (I think), eggplant... Next time I will add cauliflower, because it is so good for you and your brain and if you make this correctly, it has enough flavor to cover up the taste of nasty tasting vegetables.

Another favorite (fat is in and sugars and carbs are out, I can supply you studies if you need)
organic whole milk yogurt w/ vitamin D3 and 6 probiotics. That's it. High fat, no added sugar only the inherent milk sugar. It's bitter so to cover up the flavor I add strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries!

Jshect

11-22-14, 01:25 AM

Day 3 weight: 195
It's hard to believe I LOST 3 lbs in 3 days. That tends to happen on diets initially. Of course cutting processed foods out will cause you to lose vast amounts of weight.
Unfortunately, I tried another brand of organic yogurt. It had nothing but TWO ingredients which is what you like to see when buying a food. It was whole milk, and organic maple syrup. The maple syrup gets digested just like sugar so to my surprise this was absolutely delicious, like ice cream or something. It had so much maple syrup it was like a sweet junk food. I almost ate an entire large container, I had to throw it out to stop myself from completely eating it. Bad mistake. I expect to see my weight shoot up because of that.

BellaVita

11-22-14, 02:23 AM

I just hope I can stick to it. I just walked by a bag of bagels cooked in a local bakery and I was thinking of eating one and starting my diet tomorrow. The thing is that will be a constant problem.
If I'm going to be eating a lot of vegetables, I'm going to need to learn how to make them taste good and that's the hard part. I've got the grain-brain cook book, I've just got to discipline myself to learn to cook. If I don't learn to cook healthy foods well, than I'll never succeed, because I hate vegetables. This is going to be tough. I HATE Big Food. These horrible but delicious processed, chemical, food-like substances are everywhere. There's a convenience store on every street corner with candy, sodas, hot dogs, chips, pizza etc. Oh how can I give up soda and chips. Well there are gluten free chips.
My brain fog was so severe all these years I've got to try and stick to this diet. I probably should do something even more extreme, because my brain fog has ruined my life.
If anyone knows anything about brain fog and food please chime in.

Try to increase the foods that have B12. B12 deficiency can cause brain fog.

When I get my B12 shots, the brain fog disappears.

dvdnvwls

11-22-14, 03:14 AM

I hope this works great for you - I'm interested to hear how things are after the first couple of weeks, in terms of is it something you feel you can stick with.

Not all vegetables taste bad. :) There's something to be said for not trying too hard to cover up the real taste of what you're eating - you might turn out to like them after a while - but to ease the transition it makes sense to put something on them for added flavour.

Jshect

11-26-14, 02:28 AM

Day 7: weight 197
I've been doing OK. This is so hard. I'm eating too much meat. I haven't really been eating many processed foods, except 2 gluten-free protein bars. Tonight I broke down and had a handful of candy. It sucks when everyone around you eats crappy food. There's always bad food in this house. Also, I thought I was gluten free when I was eating Organic whole milk yogurt, that was the only ingredient, but then I realized it wasn't from grass fed cows, which only means they were grain-fed, but I guess the grain was corn?? So I guess up until I ate this candy I've been gluten-free for 7 days. However, I've only lost one pound. I've got to get more recipes and be better prepared. I have an intense sweet tooth, so I've got to make some recipes sweetened up with raspberries or something. I wish our stupid bottom-line, consumer culture didn't exist. Our society makes eating healthy so difficult!!! Oh well, I made it 7 days. I've just got to pick up where I left off, and try to learn some new recipes with veg. Wish me luck.

Unmanagable

11-26-14, 04:20 AM

High fives for your efforts and accomplishments!!

Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges are a tasty option. You can look up recipes for more spice ideas, but I typically use the recipe below. Cinammon is also an option if you want to try and satisfy a sweet tooth - use coconut oil in place of olive oil and eliminate the other spices.

Combine sweet potatoes and remaining ingredients in a bowl; toss gently to coat.
(Or - put all ingredients in a large ziploc baggie and work around until fully coated)

Place wedges on a baking sheet (do not overlap); bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until very tender.

We often throw bell peppers, potatoes, onion, mushrooms, rosemary, sage, and sweet potatoes into a pan with unsalted butter as a sort of stir fry. You can roast them like that, also.

Smoothies are a great way to curb a sweet tooth. Slice some bananas and freeze them in a single layer. Add them to a blender with a tblsp. of organic peanut butter, tsp flax seeds, tsp coconut oil, tsp. organic cocoa powder, and whichever type of milk you prefer. You can try different varieties and make some really tasty stuff. A nutri-bullet was one of my best investments.

Slice bananas in a single layer. Add a spoonful of almond/sunflower/cashew/peanut butter, then place another slice of banana on top and freeze for a snack.

Spaghetti squash is a good pasta replacement.

I make a lot of salads with various greens, carrots, celery, cucumbers, radishes, onion, fresh herbs (basil, rosemary, sage), sometimes add fresh beets, or whatever is in season. Adding nuts and various fruits to those kicks them up a notch.

Use large leafy greens like collards and kale to make sandwich wraps, in place of bread. Mustard greens have a horseradish-like flavor and goes great with roast beef sandwiches. Udi's brand of gluten-free bread, found in the freezer section) was the tastiest I tried, other than what I found at farmer's markets.

Hope those help some. Take it easy on yourself in trying to do it all at once. Take it slowly and add healthier options as you're able, or you'll overwhelm and exhaust yourself quickly. Good job on your progress, thus far!!